Using Kefir

So, today we learn how to use kefir. If you missed yesterday’s explanation of what kefir is, you can go HERE to read it. Oh, and if you’re wondering how to pronounce it, say it like this – key-fur. Yeah, I know you were puzzling over that. We’re really loving kefir in the Myers house. I am thankful that my good friend introduced me to it. I love the health benefits and the fact that it’s so much cheaper than sour cream and buttermilk. Buttermilk is so stinking expensive……must come from some kind of golden cow. Sorta like gasoline comes from some kind of golden…….uh, pump?

You can use kefir in anything that you would normally use plain yogurt, sour cream, or buttermilk in (cakes, pancakes, biscuits). Keep in mind the consistency is a little different, so you might have to play around with it. The longer you culture your kefir, or let it sit out, the more tart the taste will be…..so you have to be a little careful in things that you don’t want very tart – just use kefir that hasn’t cultured a very long time. I haven’t let any of mine go longer than 24 hours, but I wanted thinner, more mild kefir. I’ve used it successfully in tons of recipes, but my favorites are biscuits and cornbread. I love having it around because I don’t wig out when my recipe calls for buttermilk and I don’t have any. If you like plain yogurt or buttermilk, then you’ll like plain kefir. That makes me wanna gag, but if you like it, go for it. I read somewhere that you can mix kefir with real maple syrup for a good drink, so I’ve done that too and we really like it. The sweetness helps cut a little of the tang. Our favorite way to use kefir is to make Kefir Fruit Smoothies. My genius friend told me about her method of making smoothies, and I’m going to share it with you below. You make a smoothie base to store in the fridge. You can use it all week, just adding kefir as needed for a nice drink. This means you only wash your blender ONE TIME! Hallelujah! Can I get a witness?! I hate washing blenders.

Of course you need your blender. If you don’t have one, I think a food processor would work just fine. You also need fruit. I chose canned peaches, strawberries, and blueberries. The berries were out of my freezer. You can use whatever kind of fruit you want. I’ve tried all different types…..except bananas. They are on my list though. I’m afraid adding them to the base would make it turn brown, so I have plans to add smushed banana right before I serve it. Brown smoothie might look a little bit like….oh, well, nevermind about that.

Cool pic huh? Thanks Carla! My strawberries were partially thawed, but my blueberries were not. I had sweetened my strawberries before I froze them, so I just put the juice down in the blender with them…..we’ll need it later.

Now, I added the peaches with their juice. If you want a thicker smoothie, you’ll add less juice. Annie has a hard time sucking really thick smoothie through a straw….you can watch the veins pop out on her neck while she sucks for all she’s worth – yes, it’s funny but I don’t want her to pop anything.

See how thin mine is? But it’s just right for us. At this point, you want to stick your finger in there and get a taste. Make sure the blender is turned off. You want to enjoy your smoothie at home, not in the ER. Of course if you hadn’t already turned it off, the smoothie would be all over your kitchen and your dog would be in 7th heaven. You might need to add more sugar. I had sugar in my strawberries and I added the sweetened peach juice, so mine was just right. Take in mind the kefir is tangy, so you want the base to be pretty sweet.

Pour this fruit base into the container you want to keep it in the fridge. It will keep all week in there……when you need it, you’ll just pull it out – no blender required!!!! I <3 my genius friend.

Perfect way to use kefir and it’s soooooo good for you. If you don’t have kefir, you can use yogurt to mix with your smoothie base….or milk if you like it really thin.

Annie saw me making this, so she had to have some. I grabbed her cup with the straw and filled it a little over half full with fruit. We like more fruit than kefir….I usually use a ratio of 2/3 fruit to 1/3 kefir. Annie will drink it happily at ½ and ½ though. Barry puckers.

Just pour your kefir right in there with the smoothie base. Give it a stir with a mini whisk or a fork to get it mixed up really well. It looks so pretty! Not too pretty to eat though – that’s just stupid.

Seriously, this is Annie’s favorite food/drink. She cries when it’s gone. It even tops applesauce, and that’s serious business right there. We love it too….and I love that I’m giving my family something healthy for breakfast or snack.

About Stacy

Stacy is a Home Management Mentor, the author of two cookbooks, the creator of why-didn’t-I-think-of-that homemaking hacks, an expert on making real food taste lip-smacking delicious, and a Platinum Leader with Young Living Essential Oils. She loves butter, dessert, baking, organizing, and staying home with her husband and four hilarious kids. She believes if it's not easy, you won't do it - because she's lived it. She'll bring YOU the awesome so that you can get your home back into control. For tips and easy strategies, you can follow her on Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram.

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Comments

I’m so glad I was bored today – I found your entertaining and informative blog!
Tomorrow I have to try to ‘smuggle’ my newly purchased milk kefir grains through customs (flying from UK to my home in Portugal, I can’t buy them there). I thought if I drained the milk off just before I flew (so I could truthfully say I have no liquids) I could buy a cup of tea on the plane and refill my jar with the milk supplied.
I am very excited about the versatility of milk kefir I want to make cheese (I l will use your instructions, thank you).
I already make kombucha, which I cannot drink (it’s disgusting!); however I brew it for a good month (so it’s very tart) and use it in place of apple cider vinegar (dressings, marinades etc).
You say you don’t like water kefir? I do a first ferment for 48 hours, then strain, a second ferment (having added wither the juice of a lemon or lime, plus a little sugar) for another 48 hours – result fizzy lemonade type drink, it’s truly worth a try.
Thanks for your blog, it’s kept me amused today, I will be popping back on a regular basis.
Sandra

Hi Tina! I’ve been making kefir for over 6 years and I use a stainless strainer with it every day. 🙂 I’ve read pretty heavily about kefir over at Dom’s kefir site and there isn’t much to support that metals are an issue except: copper, brass, zinc, iron or aluminium. Resource: http://users.chariot.net.au/~dna/kefir-faq.html#strainers
I feel good about what I’m feeding my family. 🙂 Thanks for stopping by!

For Cindy ~ when yogurt and kefir are made with dairy milk the cultures in both reduce the lactose. They eat it. As diabetics, we let our kefir and yogurt culture for several hours, my kefir for about 36 hours. This reduces the sugar (lactose) in the food. Bacteria in the cultures eats sugar and even does so in the body after ingested. The longer the time it cultures, the more tart it becomes and this means the less sugar or lactose is present. Diabetics often suffer from additional yeast in their bodies and sometimes yeast infections. This has alleviated this problem for us as diabetics as well and helped reduce the sugars from carbs for us. This is why it is healthy and this is why many people who are lactose intolerant can eat yogurt, kefir, buttermilk and othe dairy cultured foods. A lot of cheese is also cultured and some of it can be safe for the lactose intolerant. Also, of importance is that kefir has about three times the probiotics as yogurt and is easier to make.

Oh my, about time people found out about the wonders of kafir! I grew up with this! The most amazing thing to do with this is, put a coffee filter in a strainer, or use cheese cloth, coffee filter is easier, put the kafir in it, let it drain for a day or two, what you end up with is a paste. You then can sprinkle dry mint leaves and pour a very small drizzle of olive oil on it, and salt it very lately, (I like mine tart). . voile, you have the most amazing dip! Again, growing up with this, mom would thin it down and add dry mint leaves and ice and cucumbers for a cold summer soup! Or thin it down to buttermilk consistency and ice and you can drink it as a cold beverage! You don’t HAVE to add mint leaves to it, but I do!

That looks really good! Still working on getting Gabby to like this. I like the maple syrup idea. I have actually never heard your variation on the pronunciation. At first I thought it was because we have different dialects, and maybe it is but it prompted me to find this link, it tells you three different ways to say it http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/kefir

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